Soesja Citroen - Shall We Dance Or Keep On Moping

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1989
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:25
Size: 102,7 MB
Art: Front

(3:41)  1. Natural Step
(6:47)  2. Little Niles
(4:29)  3. Lonely House
(4:06)  4. Shall We Dance
(3:21)  5. Over The HIll
(6:35)  6. Baltimore Oriole
(5:18)  7. Hi-Fly
(6:11)  8. Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most
(3:52)  9. Lonely Woman

Although not well known in the U.S., Soesja Citroen is among Holland's top jazz singers and has commanded a lot of respect in European jazz circles. Her influences include Abbey Lincoln, Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, among others, and she is an expressive interpreter of lyrics as well as a talented composer/lyricist. Though Dutch is her native language, Citroen's English is excellent--and she sings with only a slight trace of a Dutch accent. The vocalist was born and raised in the Hague, and as a young adult, she moved to Amsterdam to further her education and earned a masters degree in social psychology.

Citroen was 32 when, in 1980, she recorded her debut album, To Build and she went on to provide seven more albums in the 1980s, recording for Turning Point, Varagram and Timeless. It was in 1983 that she recorded the Turning Point release Soesja Citroen Sings Thelonious Monk, which received rave reviews from European jazz critics and is considered one of her best albums. Another conceptual offering that enjoyed high marks from European critics was 1987's Soesja Citroen sings Fred Astaire on Varagram. Citroen was equally busy in the 1990s, when she recorded for Varajazz and Challenge and often worked with the well respected British producer Chris Ellis. ~ Alex Henderson https://www.allmusic.com/artist/soesja-citroen-mn0000754593/biography

Shall We Dance Or Keep On Moping

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Soesja Citroen - Collected Songs

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:25
Size: 151,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:52)  1. My Town and Me
(2:53)  2. The Samba Calls
(5:41)  3. Love In Vain
(4:54)  4. You'll Take Care of Me
(3:37)  5. Good Old Jazz
(5:20)  6. Song for Ma
(3:11)  7. Just Another Man
(3:18)  8. Wise Women Know
(5:12)  9. Give Love One More Chance
(4:58) 10. Place of Silence
(4:13) 11. Tell Me No Fortunes
(4:05) 12. Don't Cry Baby
(4:38) 13. Sweet Companions
(4:14) 14. Sun In the Morning
(4:13) 15. Lonely Street

This height is mainly shaped by the extremely personal way in which she exercises her profession. Would it be that she ever worked as a psychologist, that she dares to be so exposed? There are of course more female singers, also in the Netherlands, who give their personal findings in the field of love and of life to publicity. But none does that like Soesja Citroen. In her thirty year career it took until 1998, before the singer dared to release an album, with those personal findings expressed in music and text. That was the album 'Song For Ma'. Meanwhile there are three: 'Soesja Sings Citroen' and 'Do not Cry Baby' have been added. They are bestsellers, because Soesja Citroen's repertoire on the stage consists mainly of pieces from these three albums. That is why it seemed to the singer a good idea to make a compilation of those songs. They now form the content of these 'Collected Songs' and are a great occasion for those who do not yet know Soesja Citroen, to get to know her. Again: the singer goes deep, gives her inner life full price in words and thereby she also succeeds in giving her music even more depth. Because what to think of this, words from her mother, that Soesja Citroen remembers, after her father left the family: 'Do not cry baby, I can not give you much hope. Daddy's gone now, so we must learn how to cope '. Or this, a nicer declaration of love after a heavy disappointment, is hardly there: "The joy and the laughter we seem to have lost, we can find once again, if we try. So give love one more chance '.  Soesja Citroen creates ballads that can be classed as classic without reservation. She gives the initiative herself, other singers, both on national and international level, can and should further develop this status. Translate By Google http://www.jazzenzo.nl/?e=670

Personnel:  Soesja Citroen: vocals;  Berend van den Berg: piano;  Joep Lumey: bass;  Joost Kesselaar: drums

Collected Songs

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Soesja Citroen - Soesja Citroen sings Thelonious Monk

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:30
Size: 98,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:52)  1. In Walked Bud
(4:51)  2. In Twilight
(4:11)  3. Come With Me
(8:58)  4. 'Round Midnight
(3:23)  5. Well You Needn't
(7:17)  6. Underneath This Cover
(5:42)  7. Blue Monk
(4:13)  8. Sure It Can Be Done

Thelonious Monk has been the subject of many jazz tributes, but not many of them have come from singers. Five years before Carmen McRae recorded 1988's stunning Carmen Sings Monk, Soesja Citroen impressed the European jazz world with this five-star collection of Monk classics. This 1983 date didn't receive much attention in the U.S., but in Europe it went down in history as a jazz-vocal classic. 

Not only does the Dutch singer impress with her soulful interpretations of Monk's unique melodies, she also demonstrates just how talented a lyricist she is. Citroen embraces the familiar lyrics to "'Round Midnight" which producer Orrin Keepnews described as "the national anthem of jazz" but on gems that range from "Monk's Mood" and "Monk's Dream" to "In Walked Bud," "Crepescule With Nellie," and "Let's Cool One," she provides fine lyrics of her own. And when you consider the fact that Dutch, not English, is Citroen's native language, her command of English seems all the more impressive. For lovers of bop-oriented jazz vocals, this outstanding CD is essential listening. ~ Alex Henderson https://www.allmusic.com/album/soesja-citroen-sings-thelonious-monk-mw0001124792

Soesja Citroen sings Thelonious Monk

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Soesja Citroen - Here & Now

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:28
Size: 140.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[4:21] 1. As Long As I Live
[4:23] 2. Some Other Spring
[6:41] 3. Peel Me A Grape
[5:23] 4. Born To Be Blue
[5:13] 5. Old Devil Moon
[4:51] 6. I'm Just A Lucky So-And-So
[5:13] 7. In Twilight (Crepescule With Nellie)
[3:56] 8. Never Make Your Move Too Soon
[8:04] 9. But Beautiful
[4:50] 10. No One Around
[4:49] 11. The Lonely Ones
[3:39] 12. My Shining Hour

Soesja Citroen joined the Challenge roster with Here and Now, which was produced by the Dutch label's in-house producer, Chris Ellis. A veteran jazz producer, Ellis was known for having great instincts when it came to singers, and he does well by Citroen on this album. Joined by pianist Cees Slinger, bassist Jan Voogd, and drummer Arnoud Gerritse, the singer is in good-to-excellent form on selections that range from Dave Frishberg's sexy "Peel Me a Grape" and Stix Hooper's bluesy "Never Make Your Move Too Soon" to well-known standards like "But Beautiful" and "My Shining Hour." Jarmo Hoogendijk, a talented Dutch trumpeter, joins Citroen on four of the CD's 12 songs, including "Peel Me a Grape," "Old Devil Moon," and Duke Ellington's "The Lonely Ones." Thankfully, Here and Now would not be the last time Citroen and Ellis would work together. ~Alex Henderson

Here & Now mc
Here & Now zippy

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